Paul Sullivan's Cubs position analysis

A pitching staff that included Ryan Dempster, Paul Maholm, Matt Garza, Jeff Samardzija and Carlos Marmol went belly up in 2012, despite prolonged stretches of dominance from those four starters and the closer. The Cubs finished 24th among all major league teams with a 4.51 earned-run average, with...

It’s hard to find any major league player who went through a 2012 season quite like Bryan LaHair did with the Cubs. After being installed as the first baseman in spring training, LaHair got his first real shot at proving himself in the majors at 29. A hot start helped LaHair get voted onto the...

In a perfect world, Brett Jackson would be the Cubs’ starting center fielder for 2013 and years to come. That was certainly the idea when Jackson was brought up from Triple-A Iowa in early August, but the former first-round draft pick fizzled in his major league debut, hitting .175 with 59 strikeouts...

Before the final game of the season, Alfonso Soriano said he's ready for the trade rumors to start this winter. The next day, Cubs President Theo Epstein said he doesn't believe people "get an accurate picture of (Soriano) watching him across the field," lauding his work ethic and quiet leadership...

The Cubs couldn’t find a way to replace Aramis Ramirez at third base this year, and have to go back to the drawing board in 2013. They tried Ian Stewart, Luis Valbuena and Josh Vitters for the most part, with Joe Mather filling in occasionally, and none earned a starting spot. Valbuena is expected...

The Cubs wanted Starlin Castro to be a model citizen, improve his fielding, add a little power and use his speed more often this year. Castro did all of those things to some degree and ultimately was rewarded with a seven-year, $60 million deal, with a $16 million option for 2020. For someone so...

After a promising rookie season, Darwin Barney really established himself as an everyday second baseman in 2012, tying the major league single season record for consecutive errorless games at his position and putting himself in consideration for a National League Gold Glove award. So what are his...

Perhaps Anthony Rizzo’s best moment as a Cub wasn’t seen by fans at the ballpark or watching on TV. Amazingly, he didn’t even have a bat in his hand at the time. That moment of truth occurred in the Cubs’ clubhouse in Phoenix after a loss in final road series, when Rizzo stood next to Darwin Barney...

The Chicago Cubs believe they have a piece of their core in place in the catcher’s spot, so there should be no need to look for one this offseason. Welington Castillo earned the starting job with a .265 average, though he hit only .195 against right-handers in 128 at-bats. They’d still like to...